Press Release: Antitrust: Commission market tests commitments proposed by Rio Tinto Alcan in markets for aluminium smelting

The European Commission is inviting comments from interested parties on commitments offered by Rio Tinto Alcan to address concerns that it may have infringed EU antitrust rules by contractually tying its leading AP aluminium smelting technology to aluminium smelter equipment it supplies, namely pot tending assemblies (PTAs).

To address these concerns, Rio Tinto Alcan offered to modify its AP technology transfer agreements so as to enable the licensees of the AP aluminium smelting technology to choose any supplier whose PTAs meet certain technical specifications. If the market test confirms that the proposed commitments remedy the competition concerns, the Commission may make the commitments legally binding on Rio Tinto Alcan.